100 Glimpses of the Lives of Demigods
by silverglow14
Summary: Come one and all, embark on our voyage into the hearts and heads of our most beloved characters! Laugh, cry, smile, frown, do a headstand, and eat pretzel M&Ms because silverglow14 is here to entertain! Rated T for some minor swearing.
1. Introduction

**(A/N) Hey guys! So for years now, I've been meaning to write a PJO story but…I'm lazy. And I admit it. So I feel like starting now! With a half hour till midnight…YEAH! Okay, so lemme lay down what you'll get here: me, writing one of those 100 oneshot challenge thingies because I've always wanted to do that. I'm gonna have to warn you guys though. There will be times when I won't update for a while due to my busyness…or just plain laziness. So if (when) that happens, my advice is to give me inspiration! Ideas on chapters are always welcome because I'm awful at creative ideas. Especially if someone can come up with an amazing title! And don't worry, just because this is my first PJO story doesn't mean it'll suck. I've been reading stories on here for years, so I have a good idea of what to do. These oneshots will be mainly Percabeth in the romance aspect, and maybe a few other pairings. But that shall all be determined at a later date! For now, we embark on our journey…of reading what the 100 chapters will be about:**

1. Introduction  
>2. Love<br>3. Light  
>4. Dark<br>5. Seeking Solace  
>6. Break Away<br>7. Heaven  
>8. Innocence<br>9. Drive  
>10. Breathe Again<br>11. Memory  
>12. Insanity<br>13. Misfortune  
>14. Smile<br>15. Silence  
>16. Questioning<br>17. Blood  
>18. Rainbow<br>19. Gray  
>20. Fortitude<br>21. Vacation  
>22. Mother Nature<br>23. Cat  
>24. No Time<br>25. Trouble Lurking  
>26. Tears<br>27. Foreign  
>28. Sorrow<br>29. Happiness  
>30. Under the Rain<br>31. Flowers  
>32. Night<br>33. Expectations  
>34. Stars<br>35. Hold My Hand  
>36. Precious Treasure<br>37. Eyes  
>38. Abandoned<br>39. Dreams  
>40. Rated<br>41. Teamwork  
>42. Standing Still<br>43. Dying  
>44. Two Roads<br>45. Illusion  
>46. Family<br>47. Creation  
>48. Childhood<br>49. Stripes  
>50. Breaking the Rules<br>51. Sport  
>52. Deep in Thought<br>53. Keeping a Secret  
>54. Tower<br>55. Waiting  
>56. Danger Ahead<br>57. Sacrifice  
>58. Kick in the Head<br>59. No Way Out  
>60. Rejection<br>61. Fairy Tale  
>62. Magic<br>63. Do Not Disturb  
>64. Multitasking<br>65. Horror  
>66. Traps<br>67. Playing the Melody  
>68. Hero<br>69. Annoyance  
>70. 67%<br>71. Obsession  
>72. Mischief Managed<br>73. I Can't  
>74. Are You Challenging Me?<br>75. Mirror  
>76. Broken Pieces<br>77. Test  
>78. Drink<br>79. Starvation  
>80. Words<br>81. Pen and Paper  
>82. Can You Hear Me?<br>83. Heal  
>84. Out Cold<br>85. Spiral  
>86. Seeing Red<br>87. Food  
>88. Pain<br>89. Through the Fire  
>90. Triangle<br>91. Drowning  
>92. All That I Have<br>93. Give Up  
>94. Last Hope<br>95. Advertisement  
>96. In the Storm<br>97. Safety First  
>98. Puzzle<br>99. Solitude  
>100. Relaxation<br>101. Moonlight

**So that's it! I added number 101, since technically it's not 100 oneshots if you count the introduction. And NOW we shall embark upon our journey...HUZZAHHHHH!**


	2. Love

**(A/N) So I wrote all the way up to the end of the fourth book in this chapter...and then it got deleted. Twice. You can imagine my annoyance. So if you wanna know why this took a long time...that's why. I hate you life. Anyways, there's a little bit of swearing, hence why this story is rated T, but I just thought I'd alert you if you're one of those people who refuses to read even one curse word. My apologies. Not really. Oh and this chapter is brief and funny and witty in the beginning, but longer and more serious towards the end, because that's kinda how the books were. TLT was definitely not as dramatic as TLO. So, enjoy!**

Chapter 1: Love  
>Third Person POV (Present Tense): Annabeth<p>

She's twelve when she meets him. He's short, gangly, awkward, and, well, unconscious. But her mother had taught her not to judge a book by its cover, so she sighs and glances down at the muddy boy who had landed on her new shoes._Thanks kid_, she thinks. _That's really how you get on a person's good side. Smearing slime and dirt and monster dust all over their shoes. Oh yeah, we'll be best friends._

Then she notices what he has in his hands. One hand is gripping Grover (moaning for food—typical) and the other a bloody Minotaur horn.

Wait.

What?

This kid beat the Minotaur? The giant bull? In all his underpantsy glory?

Maybe she is underestimating him. She tells Chiron that this scruffy kid just might be what she has been waiting for. He tells her to shut up. Humph. Well.

He drools in his sleep. Well, heroes drool sometimes, right? She isn't so sure. She's starting to doubt whether this guy really _is_the one. He seems a little dim, asking her so many questions and tripping over things. A _lot._This kid definitely isn't Zeus material. However…carefree attitude, bad sense of humor, those green eyes... no. Definitely not. He can't be _his_son or... she can't bear to even consider it.

Poseidon. It just has to be Poseidon, she curses, as she scowls her way down the hill towards Argus and the camp van. Her first thoughts are not to let him get too close. Keep him at arm's length at all times, and especially do NOT become friendly with the…sea spawn. Why him? Why did she have to go on a quest with _him?_ Why not her, Luke, and maybe a more capable son of the Big Three? Heck, even a Hades kid would have been better than _him_.

She glares sideways at him, and Percy shoots her a confused and slightly hurt look. She almost feels bad. Almost. Maybe if he didn't reek of fish.

Yet the days pass, and she feels herself growing closer to Kelp Breath. He's smarter than he seems, and not too bad a fighter. Although, he almost gets them all killed by Ares. And she had to go into the tunnel of love with him. The tunnel of _love_, for Athena's sake! Let's hope her mother didn't see that part.

They get back to camp on time and successfully stop another world war. But apparently The Fates were just getting started. She hears something happened to Percy and rushes into the Big House only to find Percy unconscious, again, with an injury, again, and drooling. Again. Luke? How could Luke have done this? She thinks back to when she first met him and realizes that Luke is a different person now. The Luke that hurt Percy... that isn't the Luke she fell in love with.

At the top of Half-Blood Hill, Annabeth reaches out to sadly pat Thalia's tree._If only you were here now_, she sighs. _Maybe you could have saved Luke_. Annabeth glances towards the bottom of the hill, where her father and step-mother are waiting in the car. _Seaweed Brain,_ she curses, for the millionth time in the past ten days. He just _had_to be all smart and serious and mature and convince her to go home for the year. But he's a good guy. During the past week, she'd befriended a Seaweed Brain. And she's okay with that.

A daughter of Athena, friends with a son of Poseidon? Ridiculous.

She's stationed outside of his apartment window, ready to run in and talk to him as soon as he wakes up. When he finally does (screaming something about ruining a perfectly good wedding dress), she moves forward. Then he takes off his shirt. And his pants. Annabeth backs away so fast she nearly falls off the fire escape. Blushing furiously, she realizes she missed her chance.

This continues throughout the day. Not the clothes thing, the bad timing thing. She'd be about to get Percy's attention and then something would happen that would mess it all up. She really needs to tell him about camp... and ask him why he keeps a picture of her in his notebook. Oh, she is _so_holding _that_ over his head.

Then Seaweed Brain gets himself in the middle of a dodge ball game. Percy and some filthy C_yclops_ versus Laistrygonian Giants. He's losing. So, naturally, Annabeth saves Percy's sorry ass and drags it back to camp with her. She's ready to kill him for befriending a Cyclops of all monsters, but she knows that'll have to wait.

They get in a fight. She figures beating him in the chariot race will give her some comfort, but she's not so sure. First Luke's gone, then Grover, and now Percy is being his stupid self again and fighting with her. Annabeth is _not_liking this summer very much.

Somehow they manage to land themselves onto a quest. Again. An illegitimate quest... but still a quest. They get on Luke's ship. It hurts to look Luke in the eyes. Hurts so badly to see him betraying her every time he opens his mouth. Every time she mentions Luke, Percy's expression darkens and he looks away, but Annabeth is too busy planning. Hoping. She'll make him good again. If anyone can do it, it's her.

A doughnut shop. A freaking monster infested _DOUGHNUT SHOP._And Clarisse is the one who saves them from the shop's number one customer. Great. Things like this do millions for her dignity. Millions.

She doubts Clarisse's plan, but they do what she says, and everything goes wrong in every way. Scylla attacks. She sees Percy get snatched and is immediately horrified. She grabs a life raft and jumps into the water. She can feel the heat building up behind her. Percy, where is he? She sees his thermos and snatches it out of the water, rocketing away from the ship as it explodes. Tyson! She isn't too fond of him but Tyson's death would just kill Percy.

That is, if he's not already dead.

Hyperventilates.

Yet sure enough, there's her lovely Kelp Head of a best friend floating face down in the water a mile away from the wreckage. Naturally he looks 100% dead and scares the crap out of her, but would he be Percy if he didn't?

They finally reach an island. Circe's island. But it looks pretty amazing to Annabeth as they give her a tour. The architecture! Astounding! Then she goes back to look for Percy. She finds him in cute little rodent form. In any other situation, she would have laughed her ass off, but Circe starts being all powerful and uses her magical convincing powers so Annabeth (unfortunately) has to change him back so they can escape.

He's back in human form, and they run off to find a boat to steal. But first she hugs the stuffing out of him. At this point, who knows when he'll end up as an eternally fluffy kindergartner's best friend? Her friends are dropping like flies. And she hates bugs.

She mentally slaps herself for insisting to listen to the sirens as she's bawling her eyes out on Percy's shoulder. Normally this would be extremely embarrassing, but she's too depressed to care. Is that really what she wants? Luke? Her parents? Those buildings? It all seems so... selfish. The whole thing just... well, hurts. Percy's arms are warm and comforting, and she misses his embrace when they get back on the ship. She keeps thinking about what she had whispered to him while they were underwater.

"Percy...thanks. Thanks for being there."

She still can't comprehend what exactly she means by that... or why she's looking at Percy differently.

At Polyphemus' island, it hits her. The rock, that is. Not some philosophical realization about life and love and all things Percy Jackson. Gods, what do you think this is? A soap opera?

She wakes up to find herself on a hippocampus with Percy. She's covered with the Golden Fleece. Percy's arm is around her, and she's too weak to move it. Okay, maybe not _that_weak. But hey, she's pretty tired.

Back at camp, they finally get to finish the chariot races. And this time, she and Percy are together. As a team. Not like, _together,_together. _Gods_, Annabeth thinks, shaking her head, _I need to stop doing that._

They win, obviously, and she takes a moment to evaluate him as they're lifted up into the air. He's not as scrawny as before, and definitely not as stupid as she'd thought him to be when they had first met. So she kisses him on the cheek. Why? She doesn't know. Since meeting Percy, she's started to change. Do things differently. Seaweed Brain style. It's new, especially for her. And she's okay with that.

A daughter of Athena, changing because of some son of Poseidon? Impossible.

At the Westover Hall dance, despite the dangerous mission they are on, Annabeth is having a good time. She tells Percy all about how much she loves her new school, and she notices that she's taller than him now. She smirks, amused, until Thalia yells at them to dance with each other. Thalia has this ridiculous theory that she likes Percy, and now Thalia's doing everything she can to make it awkward for Annabeth. And it's working.

Seaweed Brain asks her who she thinks he should ask to dance. Annabeth punches Seaweed Brain. Seaweed Brain gets the message and dances with her.

It's almost not that bad, except for the fact that Percy is a horrible dancer. But Annabeth got to talk to Percy for the first time in a while, and it was nice. She reluctantly has to stop as she notices the half-bloods they are trailing have disappeared. Naturally, Percy finds the monster first. Percy gets in danger. Annabeth jumps on the back of said monster to save Percy's ass for the millionth time. Monster jumps off cliff. Annabeth is thinking this wasn't such a good idea.

When she comes to her senses, she's at Mount Tam. Whoa. When did that happen? She sees Luke struggling to hold up the sky, and she immediately rushes to assist him. Then the slimy traitor leaves her there to hold it by herself. She feels tears well up in her eyes as Luke walks away without looking back. She can hardly manage to hold up the sky. She wishes Percy were there.

Soon enough, he actually does come to save her. She could never in a thousand years express in words how grateful she is. Artemis had long before taken up Annabeth's position under the sky, and now Percy is relieving her of her burden. As Annabeth watches him put himself in excruciating pain for the one goddess who hates boys, she can't help but think that she sure does know how to pick 'em.

Maybe he isn't such a barnacle head.

Her dad flies in to assist them in battle, and Thalia battles Luke until he falls fifty feet down the cliff. Annabeth cries out in fear. Luke! Watching him lay there, broken, almost makes her break down, but she does the right thing and stays strong as she returns to camp with her friends. Part of her knows he can't have died, that surely he is alive. So she decides he's alive and still good, deep down. He's still her Luke.

On Olympus, her mother tries to have Percy killed, and Annabeth is, obviously, annoyed. Did her mother have to kill off all her friends? Percy and Thalia look a little nervous, and as Artemis asks Thalia to become a Huntress, Percy looks relieved. Annabeth is confused by this, because didn't this mean that he would be the one in the prophecy? The chilling words she'd read so long ago... she didn't want _any_of her friends to have to go through that.

Especially not Percy. And not because she likes him! It's only because he's good to have around if a giant fish were to attack. Hey, you never know.

At the party, she searches for Percy. He had tried to tell her something important during their meeting with the gods, and she wants to know what he wanted to say. He claims he owes her a dance, and she knows that's not what he was going tell her, but he _will_tell her. Eventually. Even if she has to pressure him. Just a little. With her knife. And maybe some Greek fire. Or maybe she'll round up the Hunters and give them a new moving target.

As they dance together above Manhattan, she considers how close they've grown. And she's starting to think that maybe... she likes this Seaweed Brain a little _too_much. But he's nothing compared to Luke. Right? She's not so sure. She knows she likes Percy a little more than normal though. And she's kind of okay with that.

A daughter of Athena, crushing on a son of Poseidon? Oh, the horror!

She's heading over to Goode High School for her afternoon with Percy. Not date. Hangout. She doesn't date boys with kelp breath. At least, not yet.

When he crashes out of the side of the school with a panicked expression, she figures he's in a little trouble. When she sees the smoke, she knows he's in huge trouble. When she sees the mortal girl, he's in _tremendous_trouble.

She had never really thought about Percy being with other girls. At most, it'd probably just be another camper. But a mortal? An ugly, trashy, disgustingly mortal girl? Okay, so she isn't ugly or trashy, but that makes it even worse.

Annabeth sprints away from him, hoping to hail a cab before he has time to follow. Unfortunately he runs after her, spouting excuses, which she ignores. The cab ride to camp is silent. She's pissed. He's staring at the mortal's number written on his hand. She's even more pissed.

They arrive and she goes to find Clarisse instead of staying with him. By the time she meets up with him again at Grover's trial, her anger has transformed into sadness.

When she slides next to him on the bench, she knows she's breaking the rules. She doesn't care. She's been having a rough year, what with Luke and now Percy, and she's feeling reckless. Children of Athena are rarely reckless, and they rarely break the rules. Maybe that's why everyone is staring at her. Oops. Her heart speeds up as she feels Percy's shoulder pressed against hers, and she's angry it does that. She's supposed to be mad at him, not in love!

Yet when they fall into the labyrinth together, she just can't help but reach for his hand, his reassuring grip.

She's finally granted the quest she's been waiting for since she was seven, the one quest no one but her can lead. And she feels... nervous. Unhappy. Like she doesn't want the quest anymore. And part of her doesn't. Can she really lead them through the labyrinth? What if someone gets killed? What if it's her fault?

The prophecy spells out her fears perfectly. She ignores the part of the child of Athena's last stand, and instead focuses on the last line. The worst line. A love? Who is her love? Luke, right? She's not so sure anymore. There used to only be one guy... but now there might just be two.

She looks into Percy's eyes and knows immediately she has to ask him to do the quest with her. She can't do it without him. She still tries her hardest to silently beg him to say no, to stay in camp where it's safe and he'll be unharmed, but he still says yes, just like she had expected. She wants Grover and Tyson to come too, and Chiron warns her about having four people on a quest. He warns only three will come back. Annabeth can't meet Percy's eyes.

Of course he goes looking for her, like the awful gentleman he is, and he finds her on the verge of a breakdown in her cabin. Of course he questions her about the last line, like the stupid caring friend he is. She can't find it in herself to tell him and asks for a hug. She won't let herself think that this might be the last time she'll ever be able to hug him.

It's only been a few hours, and she's already failing miserably. Her stress level is through the roof and Janus starting her quest off by reminding her of the awful decision that's been plaguing her for the past year does nothing to help.

They almost die countless times, and Grover and Tyson are separated from her and Percy which upsets her even more. She doesn't want anything to happen to her friends, and things aren't going according to plan. Hephaestus instructs them to go to Mount St. Helens, and soon swarms of telekhines are upon her and Percy.

Percy yells at her to escape, claiming he has a plan. Annabeth knows he's lying. She knows that Percy and plans don't mix. This might be it. The last time she'll ever see him. This is his final stand. So she kisses him. She puts all of her mixed and confusing emotions into that kiss. And then she runs.

She can barely feel the heat of the volcano anymore when she hears the blast. The silence that resounds in her ears afterwards is broken by a single voice stirring from within her memories.

_"And lose a love to worse than death."_

After two weeks, she can't feel anything anymore. The colors have washed out of her life, and everything is left behind as shapeless forms of gray. She's cried so many tears that she is surprised she still has any left. Her eyes are permanently red and puffy. She can't eat. She can't sleep.

He's gone.

It's all her fault.

At his funeral, she reminisces about the good times they had as she begins her speech. She thinks about his caring eyes, his flashing smile, how brave he was, how courageous he was, how good he looked in a swimsuit, how cute he is standing there in the crowd confused, how—wait what?

SEA. WEED. BRAIN.

She's going to kill him. Ohhhh is she going to kill him! Yet instead of smacking that ridiculous grin off his face so hard it flies to Mt. Olympus, she hugs him so tightly his ribs almost crack. Oh yeah, he deserved that. How dare he scare her like that! May he suffer the wrath of her painful rib-cracking hugs!

Then she realizes where he must have been. Now she's angry. She wishes he could go back to being dead. Well, okay, maybe that's a bit extreme, but she's pretty upset. Then he says he wants the mortal to help them. Two girls in two weeks Seaweed Brain? She's ready to take him back to Hades herself.

It turns out the mortal, Rebecca or whatever, is actually just what they needed. So naturally, Annabeth is in a grumpy mood 24/7 and is fabricating insults as fast as she can recite the first 150 digits of pi. And damn, can she do that fast. Percy gets mad whenever she insults the mortal, which upsets Annabeth even more. Why is he _defending_that thing?

They find Daedalus's workshop (which is in the newer part of the labyrinth—she hates being wrong) and they discover that Quintus was really Daedalus all along.

After a close encounter with King Minos and Kelli (involving Annabeth saving Percy from being eaten), Annabeth, Percy, Nico, and Ruby (is that her name?) escape using Daedalus's copper wings. Annabeth continues her streak of saving Percy's sorry ass by telling him how not to splatter into a million pieces on the ground.

They safely make it back into the labyrinth and on their way back to camp, Percy just has this _wonderful_idea of going to sneak into the Titan's stronghold on Mount Tam. After waiting much too long, Annabeth appallingly finds herself agreeing with the mortal girl Rosa that they need to go help Percy. And then she experiences one of the worst moments of her life.

She runs and finds Luke fighting Percy. He looks the same as always. Same sandy hair, same pearly white teeth, same towering height. But Kronos is the one fighting Percy. He's in Luke's body, with eyes of gold and a deadly grin. She feels her heart break in two. What did they do to her Luke?

She's sobbing as they run farther and farther away from Kronos. She had forgotten that the last line of the prophecy still hadn't been fulfilled. Now it has. She's positive of it. She screams at Percy when he tries to angrily convince her that Luke is gone. He's wrong. She'll get him back. She'll find a way.

Back at camp, she fights alongside her friends to defeat Kronos's invasion. Luke himself isn't there, which is good; she doesn't think she can face him. They win, but there are too many lives lost, too many faces gone.

And to top it all off, she can't forget about Luke.

Daedalus gives her his laptop before his death, and she's completely engrossed by it. She allows it to consume her life. She needs an escape from the heartbreak of losing Luke and her fellow campers. She also uses it to ease the pain of looking into Percy's eyes, the pain when she's with him, and the pain when she isn't. When he'd reappeared from Mount St. Helens, she'd thought maybe they'd get somewhere. Instead, they were further apart than ever before.

It's the end of summer, and she's standing atop the hill saying goodbye to Percy. He asks her again about the prophecy, because he just has to ruin everything. She finally tells him, and her heart throbs painfully as she thinks of Luke and as she watches Percy's expression grow cold. When Hera appears and confirms her suspicions about Percy and Calypso, Annabeth just doesn't think she can be around Percy any longer. It hurts too much.

Hera leaves, and Percy tries to tell Annabeth something. She doesn't think she can handle whatever he's about to say. She's already experiencing too much heartbreak. So she quickly says goodbye and runs down the hill. She doesn't look back so he that he doesn't see the tears streaking down her face.

A daughter of Athena, heartbroken because of a son of Poseidon? Wait till Athena hears about this...

He's with the mortal again. Rhonda, or Riley, or whatever. Is Annabeth mad? Yes. Very. But she's also extremely nervous. Percy and Beckendorf are supposed to be going on an incredibly risky mission onto Kronos's ship today, and she's worried something might happen to Beckendorf. She and he are like, wicked good friends! And Silena? She'll go crazy if something happens to Beckendorf!

Annabeth is not, however, worried a single bit about a certain Seaweed Brain who is spending his possible last minutes with the mortal girl, Raven. Nope. She isn't worried one bit.

When Percy arrives, Annabeth is relieved. Er, worried! Beckendorf isn't with him! Oh screw it; she's still relieved, although Beckendorf's absence makes her heart cry with the sadness of another friend lost. She is demanding that Percy tell her about Luke, which he doesn't seem very happy about, when Chiron says that it may be time for Percy to see the prophecy.

While in the attic, Percy and Annabeth start talking about the Battle of the Labyrinth, and her eyes meet his and for a moment she wishes they could go back to the way it was before they grew so distant. But she clears her throat and reminds him of the task at hand. The prophecy.

Since he's a Seaweed Brain, he stays true to his nickname and screws up the first line of the most important prophecy in the world, and calls the gods dogs. Oh they must be loving that. As he continues, he grows more and more serious. His expression is hollow, and Annabeth wants to reach out and comfort him. When he starts talking about how he's sure to die, however, Annabeth is the one who needs the comforting.

She tries to tell him he won't die, that prophecies always have double meanings. It's more to reassure herself than to reassure Percy. He ignores her and reinforces the fact that he's going to die. She can't meet his eyes. She can't stand to lose another one. Not him.

The next day Annabeth is inspecting cabins with Percy while he sorts through reports. It's a little like old times, despite the dark mood that constantly hangs over the camp. Percy tries to be his old usual funny self, and she would have believed it if she didn't know that he's scared about the prophecy. He acts like an idiot around Silena, not being helpful in the slightest, and stares at Annabeth a little more than usual. Okay, a lot more. And he's drooling. A little. But that's normal.

She curses herself for being stupid and not cleaning her own bunk. Malcolm smiles at Percy (weird) and says they'll leave so that she can finish cleaning. Soon she and Percy are alone in the cabin, which technically isn't allowed, but Annabeth hasn't been paying much attention to the rules lately anyways.

She has wanted to tell Percy how she feels for a pretty damn long time, but seeing as the blatant hints she gives him are about as effective as if she were trying to speak to him in Mandarin Chinese, she's come to the conclusion that she is going to have to make the first move.

Nervously, Annabeth confesses that she's been thinking about losing people who are important to her. She's hoping that even Seaweed Brain could pick up where she's trying to go with that. However, since he's a fish-brained moron, he goes in the completely wrong direction and asks her about her family. _Is he trying to tell me he doesn't feel that way, or is he just plain stupid?_

She thinks (hopes) it's the second one. That is, until he says he's been dreaming about Rachel. Er, no, Rikki! Oh who cares. Fine, she knows the stupid mortal's name. Whatever. Can she punch Percy in the face now?

Annabeth does in fact end up telling Percy how she feels, but it's not exactly what she was going to say originally. She shouts at him for being a coward and leaving to go see _Rachel_. She accuses him of running away from the upcoming war, running away from camp, running away from her.

"If you don't like our chances," she growls at him, "then maybe you should go on that vacation with Rachel." She doesn't really mean it, she knows that much. But she wants him to go away for a while so that maybe the pain she always feels when he's with her will subside.

The rest of the day she avoids him as much as possible. It's easier than she thought it would be. Actually, it's _too_easy. Annabeth realizes she hasn't seen Percy since they fought. She checks the sword-fighting arena. Percy's not there. Next she checks the beach. Nope. The lake. Nada. The stables. Nothing. She even goes as far as using her invisibility cap to peek into his cabin. He's not there either. When he doesn't show up for dinner, her stomach knots itself into a ball and she knows she won't be able to eat. The horrifying possibility that he might have taken her advice and gone with Rachel is already eating her up inside.

Thankfully, he calls her the next day, with no explanation for where he's been or any apologies for scaring her to death. She brings the campers to the Empire State Building, partly because he asked her too, partly because she wants them to help her beat the crap out of him.

_He looks... different,_she decides, looking him up and down. He's also staring oddly at her, but she decides it must be unimportant. Besides, she looks pretty damn good in that black camouflage and she's having a pretty good hair day. Percy isn't the only guy staring at her.

Up on Mount Olympus, Hestia suggests that Percy now bears the curse of Achilles and Annabeth is shocked he'd do something like that without even consulting her about it. She's his best friend for crying out loud! Best friends should at least tell each other when they've boiled themselves almost to the point of death in a dirty river.

Although she has to admit he's brave as he even stands up for her against Hermes despite not knowing that she is completely at fault. This whole war... it's entirely her fault. If only she had helped Luke. Maybe Kronos wouldn't have risen. Maybe Percy wouldn't have been the one in the prophecy.

They're fighting enemy demigods when she feels it. A stir in the air, as if time is slowing down, and a cold feeling washes over her. Annabeth turns to see Ethan Nakamura aiming a knife at Percy's back. She doesn't know what it is, but something tells her that if that knife hits its target, Percy will die.

Annabeth does the only logical thing. She takes the knife.

_She's falling... falling... falling into darkness._

Annabeth wakes up to find herself surrounded by her siblings and, after a few minutes, Percy. His eyebrows are scrunched together in worry and his face is pale. To her he looks pretty damn cute, but maybe that's just the poison talking.

He holds her hand as Will cleans her wound and Annabeth thinks that's very sweet of him. The others file out, and finally, they're alone. Annabeth can't believe how different Percy looks compared to four years ago. He's tall, strong, brave as all hell, and she knows he could take anyone in a fight. He'd even fought a couple gods and titans and hadn't died yet. Four years ago, he was just some kid who was supposed to be her enemy. Now... he's her best friend and maybe even the love of her life. Oh, and he's still supposed to be her enemy. But details, details, who needs 'em?

When her hand touches his weak spot, the one spot that keeps him mortal, she feels a blast of cold travel up her arm. _So this is where it is,_she thinks to herself. _Idiot. The back is an easy target when you're not wearing armor. And he's not wearing armor. Idiot._

Well, at least now she knows how to kill him. And if he disappears with Calypso or Rachel _one more time_...

Happy thoughts, Annabeth. Happy thoughts. Percy is holding your hand, you're watching the beautiful sunrise together, and he's not even freaking out that much when you mention Luke! Happy thoughts.

She's finally well enough to get up and put on her armor (thank the gods—she hated being the damsel in distress) and her first order of business is to wake up her Prince Seaweed Brain. He bangs his head on her shield. Oops.

After a few nasty incidents with a Hyperborean giant, a giant flying pig, and Kronos, Annabeth has what she figures is the last time she'll get to talk to Percy privately. She wants to tell him how she feels—wants to _so so__bad—_but instead they talk about Luke, and she wonders when talking about saving Luke started disappointing her. Maybe it's because whenever she mentions Luke to Percy, he gets mad at her and won't speak. His reaction makes her miss how he used to hold her like he did in the Sea of Monsters, like he did in her cabin last summer, like he loved her.

He's so upset about his mother and Paul that she's thinking maybe she can sneak a hug in to comfort him and then they'll get back on the right path, when Rachel shows up. In a helicopter. About to crash into a building. (Un)fortunately, Rachel crashes into the building and the helicopter lights on fire. Then it explodes and falls to the ground. Hundreds of tons of concrete and glass crash on top of the already irreparable air vehicle and just as Kronos walks by, the whole mess explodes again and he dies. Kronos and Rachel are both gone. Then Percy professes his undying love for Annabeth, picks her up bridal style, and whisks her away to Greece where she reconstructs the entire city of Athens.

She wishes.

However, this beautiful scenario just keeps replaying through her head as she flies closer to the helicopter. Every single particle in her body is screaming at her to just let Rachel crash so that she'd be rid of the red-haired problem, but something tells her Percy would never be the same if Rachel died because of him. So now we have a pissed Annabeth landing a helicopter that she really wishes had crashed before she could reach it.

Percy asks if she'll help him fight the drakon. Why not Dare? Why doesn't he ask her? Is she too precious for him to lose? Is Annabeth just so worthless that he'd rather let her get killed by a giant scaly beast? Sometimes that weak spot of his looks like a wonderful place to send her knife flying at.

Annabeth curses herself for not reaching Clarrise/Silena in time. If she had ran a little faster, or if she hadn't been burdened by a sword wound she bore for her jackass Seaweed Brain, then maybe she could have saved Silena.

But it's all Luke's fault. Luke did this. He made Silena be the spy. Annabeth feels the sky fall down around her and she starts feeling dizzy. Luke couldn't have... he never liked Silena... he's always going to be Annabeth's. Right? Wrong. She finally believes it. She sees what Percy has been trying to tell her all along. Luke is evil.

Luke's gone and Percy probably likes Rachel. Both of the most important guys in her life have slipped out of her grasp, and she's only beginning to feel the pain.

She's so upset and deranged that she launches herself at Kronos with only her knife. He took away Luke, he hurt Chiron, and the pain from all of the heartbreak he has caused her over the years is nothing compared to the jolt of pain that shoots up her arm as she stabs him. Percy has to drag her away as she screams "I hate you!" at Kronos, at Luke, and maybe even a little bit at Percy.

Annabeth isn't just falling off of the bridge to Olympus; she's falling farther and farther into the pit of darkness inside her heart. But then Percy catches her. Physically and mentally. He saves her from losing her life and herself, and she doesn't want him to let go of her. But they have a world to attempt to save, so they get back up and make their way towards their almost certain demise.

The idea is crazy, but it will work. She knows it will. Her knife was given to her with an empty promise, so does that technically mean it's cursed now? Annabeth sure hopes so. She forces herself to look Luke in the eyes again, to make him emerge from where Kronos has him confined inside his body. She finally does it. She gets through to him, and Percy hands him the knife and she watches sadly as Luke is forced to kill himself and Kronos.

He asks her one last question. The daunting question she has been asking herself for months.

"Did you... did you love me?"

A year ago, she would have said yes without hesitation. But now, after all she's been through, she looks at Percy. Annabeth is entranced by his presence, his existence, his seaweedness. He's still alive. Luke is dying, but he's still alive. That's all she can focus on. She's never truly loved two people. Only one.

"You were like a brother to me, Luke. But I didn't love you."

Kronos is stopped, Luke is dead, and the world and the gods are saved. Yet the negatives seem to outweigh the positives. Many of her friends are dead. The amount of destruction caused will take months to fix. Rachel didn't die. And Annabeth even passed out in Percy's arms in front of the entire Olympian council. Great. Is she starting to turn into some girly wimp or something?

After rejoining the meeting, her mother grants Annabeth her dream. She is going to be an architect for Olympus!

Then Zeus makes her worst nightmare a reality: Percy is awarded immortality. Godhood. Eternal life.

She almost has a freaking heart attack.

"He's gonna say yes, he's gonna say yes, oh _crap_ he's gonna say yes," she mutters under her breath. Okay, she's downright horrified. Ready to pee her pants scared. She loses one guy to Hades and now the other to immortality? What kind of luck is that?

Then Percy makes the most idiotic, moronic, utterly and incessantly stupid decision of his life and of the history of the world. And it's the sweetest thing he's ever done.

He turns down immortality. Turns it _down_! He says no. Rejects it. Shakes his head.

Annabeth is ready to run at him and tackle him in front of the gods, including her mother.

Then he demands that all demigods must be claimed and brought to camp and that no one can be ignored anymore. Gods, since when did Percy become amazing?

They return to camp, and for once in an extremely long time it is actually peaceful. The funerals and shroud burning ceremonies are tough to make it through, but somehow by the end of the day everyone has accepted the brutality left upon them by the war. After dinner she goes to her cabin to retrieve a very special cupcake for a very special guy and makes her way back to the dining pavilion where Percy is still sitting.

She finally gets her wish from earlier that day. She makes out with Seaweed Brain like crazy. Not in front of the gods though. Nah, just the whole camp. Who then threw them in the lake. Annabeth doesn't think she'll ever find a way to describe the amazing feeling of kissing underwater.

She finally got the love of her life. Yeah, he might be a kelp-headed moron named Seaweed Brain. But she's okay with that.

A daughter of Athena dating a son of Poseidon? Finally. Only took the whole damn series.

**(A/N) YAYYY! Okay, I know that took way to long, but in my defense, I've written this story about five times and each time it got deleted, so you'll understand why I got sick of writing it eventually. Anyways, I promise the next chapter will be up much sooner (hopefully this week) and it will be shorter, because this thing is long as hell. Our journey continues with chapter 2: Light! I think. Is that it? Light? I think so.**


	3. Light

**(A/N) Okay, so this is kind of a silly chapter, but for some reason when I think of the word light I think of that scene in The Lion King where Mufasa is showing Simba their kingdom. And thus, this was born! I didn't follow the story line exactly, so I apologize. Happy New Year by the way!**

Chapter 2: Light  
>Third Person POV: Percy<p>

It was around one in the morning, and Percy and Annabeth sat alone in Percy's cabin. It was against the rules for two campers to be together this late at night, but Annabeth had waited until her siblings were asleep and then used her invisibility cap to sneak into Percy's cabin. So there they were. Together. Alone. Now, what could two hormonal teenagers possibly be doing in a cabin alone?

Watching The Lion King of course!

Percy had brought an old TV into his cabin along with a VCR and Annabeth had brought the movie on VHS tape. They sat together on Percy's bunk and watched the movie.

They were watching the end credits when Annabeth stood up and looked at Percy. "I'd better get going. If Malcolm notices I'm not there he'll guess that I'm with you."

Percy snorted. "So? What's he gonna do? Tell on you? It's not like we were doing anything bad, Wise Girl."

Annabeth raised an eyebrow as she picked up her Yankees cap. "Oh he'd kill you."

"Me? He wouldn't try to kill me... right?" Percy added as he saw the expressionless look on Annabeth's face.

"Night Percy!" She quickly kissed him, put on her hat, and ran from the cabin.

"ANNABETH!" he exclaimed as he leaped to open the door. He scanned the darkness but didn't see her. Then he realized duh, he couldn't see her, she was _invisible. _Well that put an end to his plan of pursuing her to find out what exactly Malcolm would do to him. Sighing, Percy laid on his bed and stared at the rolling credits on the TV screen. His eyes drooped and he slowly fell asleep.

When Percy woke up, he noticed his bed wasn't very comfortable. In fact, it was cold and hard and uninviting. He stood up and stretched, opening his eyes to see a cave full of... lions?

He almost peed his pants. Then he realized he wasn't even wearing pants.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH HHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"PERCY? What's wrong? Are the elephants stampeding again?" A fully grown lion approached him. Percy froze. That thing could eat him in three seconds, easy. It was strong and lithe, with claws as sharp as Riptide. A lean, mean, Percy killing machine. And Percy was just a cute little fluff ball with claws the size of toothpicks.

He was doomed.

"Percy? Answer me, what's wrong?" Somewhere, in that tiny little brain of his, Percy recognized the voice of the lion.

He couldn't believe his little cat ears. "...Dad?"

"Yes, who else? Now what's wrong?" Percy stared at him. There was Poseidon, in lion form. Okay. That he could believe. But when a lioness silently padded over and spoke with a warm voice that matched his mothers, he almost fainted.

"Percy dear? What's the matter? I thought you and your father weren't going to go to the top of Pride Rock for another hour or so."

_Quick Percy, think. _"Err yeah, I just uh, wanted to go early! So we could, you know, be there right before sunrise."

Poseidon nodded. "All right, we can go now if you'd like. We'll be back in time for breakfast. Come, Percy. Say goodbye to your mother."

Percy waved meekly with his paw, and Sally gave him a confused look. _Oh right. Lions don't wave._ "Um, bye!" Then Percy jogged to catch up with his father who had already exited the cave. They climbed and climbed until Percy was beginning to think they'd never reach the top and his little lion body would be a delicious vulture snack. After a few minutes, however, they reached the top and by then the sun had begun to rise. A great expanse of land lay before them, peppered with wild animals frolicking around in different parts of the grasslands.

"Look, Percy. Everything the light touches is our kingdom." Percy indeed looked. And damn, did that light touch A LOT.

"Wow. It's... nice?" Yeah, the scenery was pretty. But Percy couldn't spot an Xbox or a Dunkin' Donuts anywhere. Not a very great kingdom if you asked him. "What about that little dark splotchy place over there?"

"That's beyond our borders. You must never go there, Percy." Oh great. He'd be willing to bet a drachma that there was probably an Xbox over there.

"But I'm a king, right? Can't they do pretty much whatever and get their way?"

"Oh, there's more to being king than getting your way all the time," Poseidon winked. He nodded towards the path that led down the rock and began his descent. Groaning, Percy was forced to follow him and begin the treacherous walk again. Couldn't they give him a break from all this walking? He wasn't used to having paws.

They reached a beautiful water hole once they were finally off the rock and on the ground. The golden sunshine illuminated the clear blue water, letting Percy see all the fish swimming at the bottom. He tried to talk to them, but to no avail. What was this? He couldn't even talk to fish anymore?

"My lord," An ugly blue bird flapped its way over to Poseidon. "I have the morning report ready, if you'd like to hear it." Percy took a minute to observe the bird. Unclean, disgusting appearance, expression full of loathing, scathing tone...

"Hey Mr. D!" Percy grinned, showing his full mouth of sharp lion teeth so that Mr. D wouldn't get any ideas.

"Hello Peter," Mr. D scowled. He then turned his attention back to Poseidon. "As I was saying, I'm supposed to tell you the morning report. The zebras are arguing with the giraffes again over who has the rights to a new water hole they found. Oh, and Sally says this little rat needs a bath.

"Hey!" Percy protested.

"Settle down son. I'm going to have to settle this matter between the zebras and the giraffes. Mr. D, could you return Percy to his mother please?"

Mr. D shot Percy a look of pure hatred before accepting Poseidon's request. Poseidon sprinted in the opposite direction as Percy and Mr. D made their way back over to Pride Rock.

"Oh look, there's Luke. I'm sure he will accompany you back. Ta ta, Peter." Mr. D flew away before Percy could complain. Gulping, Percy looked ahead and saw that sure enough, he was being approached by an older lion. This lion was fully grown, but not nearly as strong or proud looking as Poseidon had been. Percy noticed this one had a scar on its face.

Luke.

Crap.

"Hey Percy," Luke grinned. "You on your way back? I'll take you there safely. You shouldn't wander around alone, you know. This is a dangerous place for little guys like you."

"You're alone and you seem to be fine."

Luke shot him an amused glance. "Yeah well, I'm older than you, right? When you're big and strong like me, you'll be okay. But for now..."

Percy decided this must be some sort of alternate universe that he had entered. Whatever the case, Luke seemed friendly enough, so Percy walked back with him. Besides, the real Luke was dead, so where was the harm? Percy had to find a way out of this whole lion mess, and he didn't want to be distracted with suspicions about Luke.

"So you know that dark place over there? What is that?" Percy asked as innocently as he could. He _had _to find out if there really was something cool over there, and if anyone were to know, it would be Luke.

He frowned and glanced over to his left, towards the ominous place. "Oh, nothing really. That place is only for the bravest lions, like myself," Luke smirked. "If I were you, I'd stay out of there. It's too scary for someone like you."

"I'm not scared! I can do anything you can!" Percy wanted to show up Luke. That, and he had a sneaking suspicion that the solution to his problems might be there.

"Ah well, if you insist. Anyways, we're here. I'll see ya later, okay?" Luke strode away from Percy, muttering something under his breath. Percy had begun walking up Pride Rock when he encountered his mother.

"There you are Percy! Bath time!" She started licking his fur. Now, being a lion might be pretty cool and all, but being licked clean by your mother? _Not_ cool. And it was pretty embarrassing. At least no one was there to see him... except...

Percy gasped. Mr. D was gliding next to a young lioness who was striding towards him. She had honey blonde fur and dark gray eyes. She was beautiful, as far as female lions go.

"Hey Percy," She snickered, watching him struggling in his mothers grip. Mr. D fell on the ground laughing.

"Oh hey—Mom, STOP—sorry, uh hi... Annabeth?" The young lioness nodded.

"What? Don't remember me? We've only been friends forever."

"No, no! I remember!"

She smiled. "Good. Anyways, I was just on my way to the water hole. Wanna come?"

Percy stopped to think for a minute. If he were to venture to the supposed dark and scary place, he'd definitely need help. If he had to choose anyone to go with him, it would be Annabeth. Maybe he could convince her to go with him.

"Er, yeah! Hey mom, can I go?" _Please please please please please please!_

Sally tilted her head and considered his question. "I guess... but only if Mr. D accompanies you!"

Percy, Annabeth, and Mr. D flinched. "WHAT?"

"Yes. Percy, Annabeth, you two are too young to go alone. Mr. D, you'll watch them, right?"

If Mr. D could vaporize her in bird form, the look he gave her would have. "Of course... Sally."

It was awful. The whole way there, Mr. D sang the most horrible songs he could think of. The Wheels on the Bus. It's A Small World. Last Friday Night by Katy Perry.

Awful.

"Come on brats, the sooner we get there, the sooner we can leave," Mr. D said, scowling.

Percy threw Annabeth a side glance. "Hey... I didn't actually want to go to the water hole. I wanted to go somewhere else. Better. More exciting," he whispered.

"I'm listening."

"But first, we have to get rid of _that_." Percy watched as Annabeth glanced at Mr. D and nodded.

"Follow my lead. I have a plan." He always knew he could count on Annabeth.

Annabeth leaped forward, stopped in front of Mr. D and screamed, "LOOK OUT! ELEPHANT STAMPEDE!"

Mr. D screamed like a little girl and flew in circles shouting, "DON'T STEP ON ME DON'T STEP ON ME!"

"Quick, let's go!" Annabeth motioned for Percy to follow her. They ran away from Mr. D together, Percy showing her the way. They found themselves in... an elephant graveyard?

Damn. Percy had really wanted that Xbox. Or maybe even a magical portal that could teleport him back to New York.

"Do you hear that?" Annabeth asked. Percy craned his neck forward, and heard laughing. Evil laughing. A dark shadow passed over Annabeth and Percy. They turned around and saw dark silhouettes hiding in the shadows.

"RUN!" Percy screamed. He and Annabeth were separated as they tripped down the bones and rocks. Percy ran for his life, calling out Annabeth's name in the hopes of finding her. She was nowhere to be seen. He ran into a large ravine and found himself surrounding by the dark beings that were chasing him. One stepped out of the shadows, and he recognized it as a hyena.

"So. Thought you could run from us, lion? You shouldn't be so cocky. We are the Hyenas. There's no running from us." Percy had nothing to say. The hyena that stepped forward had a mop of spiky black fur on its head, and seemed to glow with a silvery light. In fact, all the hyenas did.

"Thalia?" The hyena looked shocked. Huh. The Hyenas. The Hunters. Made sense.

"How did you know my name?" Thalia hissed. "We don't talk to lions. We eat lions. Whatever. You won't know my name for much longer. Girls, attack!"

Percy's eyes widened and he stumbled backwards. "Thalia, wait—"

He was cut off by a distant rumbling. Thalia glanced at the ground, were tiny pebbles had begun to bounce. Percy's mind was racing. An earthquake?

"It's a stampede! Leave the boy!" Thalia and the Hyenas scrambled up the sides of the ravine. Percy just stood there, gaping at the wildebeest that were pounding towards him. There had to be thousands. They couldn't be stopped. He ought to have run, but he just stood there frozen.

"PERCY!" Percy felt himself being lifted from the ground, and he glanced up and saw his father. Poseidon grabbed him with his mouth and clawed up the side of the ravine and deposited Percy on a ledge high enough so that he wouldn't be harmed. By then, the wildebeest had reached the place where Percy had been standing. He would have been flattened.

Poseidon lost hold on the wall and fell back into the stampede. Percy watched, amazed, as he navigated himself through the wildebeest and found another place on the rock where he could climb up. Percy quickly scrambled to the top of the rock, where he spotted Luke.

"Luke? What are you— DAD NO!" screamed Percy as he watched his dad fall into the stampede. "Luke, we have to save him!"

Luke shook his head firmly. "No Percy. You can't. He's gone. He's gone! He's finally—I mean, he's gone."

Percy stared at Luke in shock. "He can't be dead! He's my dad!" Pushing past Luke, Percy scampered down the cliff to the bottom of the ravine. The stampede was gone, and he spotted his father under a broken tree.

"Dad...no..." Percy felt himself shaking. This couldn't be happening. None of this could be real. But then why did it seem so real...

"Percy... what have you done?" Luke shook his head, aghast.

"It was an accident, I swear!"

Luke sighed and looked down. "No one ever means for this to happen Percy, but it did. If you hadn't come here against my wishes, he would have still been alive. The King is dead." Luke raised his head and stared into Percy's eyes. "They'll never accept you after this Percy. Leave. Save yourself. I'll cover up for you as best as I can, but you must promise me you will never return."

Percy was too horrified to think clearly. So he ran, just as Luke had told him. He ran as far away as he could until he couldn't run any longer. He collapsed on the ground in exhaustion.

When Percy came to his senses, he found himself in a beautiful exotic area with a large waterfall. The air smelled of tropical flowers, and he was almost enjoying himself until he remembered what had happened. His father. Luke. Everything. He was trapped in this weird universe. Stuck as a lion forever, with friends who hated him.

He laid on the ground miserably until a dark shadow fell over him. "HELLO FRIEND!" it boomed. Percy glanced up to see a large warthog smiling down at him. A small meerkat was hiding behind the warthog. "I AM TYSON AND THIS IS GROVER!"

Percy sat up straighter as he recognized the names. He peered around Tyson to look at Grover. He screamed and ran away. "DON'T EAT ME PLEASE DON'T EAT ME, I DON'T TASTE VERY GOOD I SWEAR!"

Yup. That was Grover all right.

Percy shook his head. "I won't eat you. I promise. Now if you excuse me, I think I'll just sit here and die slowly."

Grover hopped back over next to Percy. "What? You dare refuse to eat this rockin' body? Don't I look appetizing? Aw, c'mon... you can eat Tyson if you want!"

"Hey!"

"Sorry big guy, but how else am I supposed to cheer him up?"

Percy sighed. "It's fine. It's not your fault. It's something I did. I'm Percy, by the way."

"Well Percy, the past is the past! You need to learn to live for the future! Hakuna Matata! No worries!"

"No worries eh? I could live with that..." Percy grinned.

Tyson jumped up and down with excitement. "Oh oh oh oh oh oh Grover can Percy live with us pleaseeeeee?"

"Hmm," Grover circled Percy.

"Promise I won't eat you."

"DEAL!" Grover grinned.

After a year of living with Tyson and Grover, Percy learned to leave his past behind him. He had grown to his full size and now had a thick mane around his head. He was a pretty studly lion. At least, he thought he was.

It was a normal day at the oasis, until Percy heard Grover screaming as he ran through the bushes.

"HEEELLLPPPPPPPPPP! SHE'S GONNA EAT ME! SHE'S GONNA EAT MEEE!" Grover hid behind Percy, quivering. Percy raised his head and got into a pouncing position. Just as he was about to leap forward, a lioness crashed through the bushes and pinned him to the ground. Percy stared up at her in shock.

"Tyson! Tyson, come quick! Percy's in trouble! She's gonna eat me!"

"Grover, shut up!" Percy shot the meerkat a menacing look before glancing up at the familiar looking lioness. "...Annabeth?"

"Percy? Is that really you? I thought you were dead!"

_Dead? I'm not dead. _"Er well as you can see I'm pretty alive here, so uh if you wouldn't mind..."

Annabeth blinked, confused, and then realized what he meant. "Oh! Right, sorry, I'll get off of you."

"Thanks." Just then, Tyson came thundering towards them, his eyes large and wild with fear.

"Is Percy okay? Pretty girl lion no hurt Percy?"

Percy chuckled. "It's okay big guy. We know each other. Back when we were little and I was gonna be..." Percy trailed off as his mind flooded with bad memories. Annabeth knew what he was going to say.

"King. When he was going to be king. Percy, you have to come back! It's awful out there! Luke has destroyed the Pride Lands. He needs to be stopped, and you're the only one who can do it!"

"Luke?" Percy asked gruffly. "I should have known... I'm sorry Annabeth, but I can't. You know what I did. I won't be welcome there."

Annabeth, to his surprise, looked as if she had no idea what he was talking about. "What did you—"

"WAIT. So lemme get this straight. You know her. She knows you. You're supposed to be some sort of king. Is she your queen or something?" Percy and Annabeth looked over in embarrassment at Grover.

"Guys, do you mind giving us some, you know, _privacy?_" Percy growled.

Grover pretended to think about it for a second. "Yes, we do mind. Tyson and I go nowhere until you tell us the truth!"

"I'll eat you."

"Tyson, I believe I forgot my harmonica on my hammock. We should probably go get it!" Tyson nodded happily and followed Grover as they exited through a set of bushes.

Percy sighed and glanced over at Annabeth, who was looking down at the ground in worry. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she sniffed, "it's just that for so long, we thought you were dead. I... thought you were dead."

Percy stepped forward, cursing himself for being so stupid. "Annabeth, I—"

_"I can see what's happening__  
><em>_And they don't have a clueee!__  
><em>_They'll fall in love and here's the bottom line:__  
><em>_Our trio's down to two!_

_The sweet caress_ of—"

"WILL YOU TWO SHUT UP?"

"...Sorry Percy..."

Percy cleared his throat and turned back to Annabeth. She looked at him expectantly and asked, "So will you come back with me?"

"I'm sorry Annabeth but... I can't."

He expected her to glare at him, yell at him, or maybe tackle him to the ground again. But what she did hurt him even worse. She stared hollowly at him and shook her head. "You aren't the Percy I remember." Then she ran off.

"SO! Looks like you screwed up big time with the nice lady. And what do you have to say for yourself?" Percy was seething with anger. He turned to face Grover and knocked him down with his large paw.

"You don't know anything! You don't know why I can't go back! You know NOTHING!"

Grover stared at Percy, shaking with fear, but somehow keeping a calm expression. "But I do know you. And I know it's not like you to abandon your friends when they need you most."

Percy sighed and let Grover back up. He knew he was right. Percy had to go back... whether he wanted to or not. "All right guys. Field trip time! Pride Lands here we come."

Tyson howled with glee. "Will there be rainbow ponies?"

"Um... no."

"Oh. Camouflage flamingos?"

"What? No!"

"Enchiladas?" Grover suggested.

"NO! I'll just show you when we get there, okay?" And after that, they took off to the Pride Lands.

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"..._Now _are we there yet?"

"No!"

"How about now?"

"GROVER, I— oh my gods..."

The Pride Lands were a disaster. Percy could hardly believe it was the same place. The grass was replaced with dry, cracked ground, the waterhole was dried up, and there were no other animals in sight. They were alone.

"Ah, it's err... lovely. So where to now your highness? Lemme guess. Is it that big ominous looking rock up there?"

Percy glanced at Grover. "Yep. Pretty much. Well we better get moving."

Luke walked out to meet them, along with the other lions. Percy saw his mother gasp and Annabeth's eyes widen.

"So you came back. How... unfortunate."

"Shut it Luke. You know what I want. Step down and let me be king."

Luke snarled. "Why would I do that? I do a perfectly good job! Don't I, Annabeth?"

Annabeth looked at the wastelands and then back at Luke. "Are you serious?"

"Quiet, you idiot!" Luke advanced towards Annabeth with his paw raised and about to strike.

"Don't you dare touch her Luke!" Percy leaped in front of Annabeth.

Grover hopped to Percy's side. "Yeah, don't hurt the girl when she's right! This place could seriously use some lemon pledge."

"That's it. You're dead meat. Father killer."

_Oh, that was below the belt. _Luke charged at Percy and Percy dodged his attack and scraped Luke's side. He howled in pain and turned around to bite Percy's front leg. Percy managed to shake him off before pushing Luke backwards with all his might. Luke fell over the cliff's edge and hung on with only his claws.

Percy walked forward, stone-faced. "Tell them Luke. Tell them who killed my father. Tell them the truth!"

"Never!"

Grover sprayed Luke with his for-emergencies-only mace.

"Agh! It burns! Fine, it was me!" He squirmed in pain and accidentally let go of the rock's edge. The last they saw of Luke was his body flailing helplessly as he fell downwards.

Annabeth ran towards Percy gratefully. "You did it Percy! You're the new king!"

"Isn't there like, some sort of initiating ceremony? A crowning, or something?"

"You want a ceremony? Oh, I'll give you a ceremony!" A wild red-haired monkey whacked Percy on the head with her staff.

Percy cried in pain. "Ow! What was that for?"

The monkey looked at him distastefully. "For being an idiot. Now, a ceremony you say? Well, I suppose you could go roar at the top of the rock."

"Won't I look like an idiot?"

"Yes."

"Gee, thanks... uhh... what was your name?"

"You don't remember my name? Jeez, Percy, you moron!" _WHAP!_

Percy woke with a start. Then he realized someone was whacking him on the head with a foam baseball bat.

"Percy—Jackson—you—idiot—wake—UP!" Rachel hit him harder with each word. Annabeth, Grover, and Thalia stood near the door of his cabin, laughing at his bewildered expression.

"Rachel, what the Hades are you doing?!"

Rachel scowled at him and put her hands on her hips. "Finally. It's two in the afternoon Percy! You slept half the day away! We're supposed to play pegasus baseball today, remember? Campers versus Hunters?" She scanned his blank face. "Ugh! You're hopeless. Come on you guys, let's just leave him here. Meet us at Thalia's pine in five if you still wanna practice," she called out to him as they exited his cabin.

Percy rubbed his head, frowning. Was that all really a dream? It had seemed so real. _Who am I kidding, _he thought. _There wouldn't be mace in the Pride Lands._

He jogged to the top of Half- Blood Hill, happy that he had beaten his friends to the top. As he watched them climb slowly up the hill, he gazed at the camp, noticing how not one part was in darkness. The whole valley was full of golden sunshine.

_"Look Percy. Everything the light touches is our kingdom."_

This was his kingdom, he was sure of it. Maybe he wasn't the king here, but camp was definitely a kingdom for him and every other half-blood. Percy smiled to himself as his friends joined him. He'd pick this kingdom over all the others any day.


	4. Dark

**(A/N) So, because I'm uncreative as hell, this (short) chapter, "dark", is gonna be about…..NICO! So since Nico doesn't exactly have a pairing, this chapter is going to be a little sad, serious and err...dark. Ironic right? Anyways, I have the next six chapters planned out so far, so hopefully I'll be updating faster. Usually I'm going to focus on a pairing or just a solo character. Just so you're aware, the next six chapters in this order, will be about: Clarrise/Chris, Thalia, Beckendorf/Silena, Travis/Katie, Percy/Annabeth, and Thalia/Luke. I know I'm still missing Grover/Juniper but I'll get there eventually. If there's a pairing you want me to write about, let me know in a review and I'll try. And last but not least, thank you to those who reviewed or subscribed to this story! I like reading what you guys have to say, so thank you very much!**

Chapter 3: Dark  
>Third Person POV: Nico<p>

He was always in the dark. He traveled, he experienced, he _lived_ in the dark. It was the closest thing he had to a friend. Nico knew that the others didn't like him. A son of Hades unsettled them, made them nervous. He was okay with that though. He hadn't been much of a people person since his sister's death.

But he did think it was a bit ridiculous that whenever he walked near a crowd of people, they scattered as if he were Medusa. Was he really that ugly? Maybe he _should_ have gotten that Bieber haircut... people always swarmed around that guy.

Whatever. He didn't need anyone else. The only person he could trust was himself, anyways. The living were too selfish, always constantly scheming to get their way. Nico preferred the dead. They were easy to deal with and did everything he said. So, all in all, Nico had a perfect life. No one bothered him with their stupid trivial problems, he never had to wait in line because everyone always ran away, and he had an army of billions of dead souls at his command. But he couldn't shake the feeling that there was something missing...

He felt the empty feeling whenever he saw Annabeth hug Percy after Percy had risked his life in some stupid stunt to draw the monsters away from her. He felt it whenever he watched Beckendorf and Silena hold hands as they walked through Elysium together. He even felt it when he saw how excited Juniper was when Grover returned from his most recent nature trip.

Nico didn't get it. What was the matter with him? Why would he want what they had? He was a son of Hades, for crying out loud. He wasn't supposed to want love. He was supposed to kill things. It was ridiculous for a lord of the dead to want to be loved, but his heart said otherwise.

His heart was lonely. He'd been in the dark for so long by himself that he'd forgotten what it was like to have a crush on a girl. He remembered when he was nine he had liked a girl in his grade named Rose, before he had entered the Lotus Casino. He was always hoping he'd be paired up with her in Math class and he shared his cookies with her at lunch. At recess, he'd watch her skip rope as he and all the other boys played tag. But that was way back in the 1930s. This was the twenty-first century. He hadn't liked a girl for over seventy years.

Ouch. He needed to get his mojo back.

The only problem was he hated people and they hated him. Everything about him screamed creepy, something he knew instantly turned girls away. Well, more like they run for their lives because he usually walks around with one of his skeletal minions. But really, what's so wrong with skeletons?

Nico sighed. He was walking down an alleyway behind the Empire State Building. It was five in the morning and the sun was about to rise. He had to shadow travel back to camp before they all woke up and noticed he was missing. Nico turned to face the side the of building and sank into the shadows on the wall.

He resurfaced in his cabin at camp, which had a separate dark room just for his own traveling purposes. Exhausted, he sank into his bed, his earlier thoughts still tugging at his heartstrings. He drifted into an uncomfortable slumber.

"Leila, I don't think you should—"

"Chillax, Annabeth. It's not like he's gonna eat me. I just wanna see what he looks like."

Nico squinted from where he lay on the bed and saw a girl with shining gold hair peering at him.

"Wha—who the hell are you?"

The girl tutted and shook her head. "Now really, is that how you treat new campers here? Not a very friendly greeting. And last I checked, h - e double hockey sticks was a bad word. Besides, the Fields of Punishment is a more accurate representation."

Nico couldn't believe this girl. First she breaks into his cabin while he's sleeping and now she's trying to lecture _him_, of all people, about the Underworld.

"Look, girl. I don't know who the Hades you think you are, but this is _my _cabin, not your little playroom!" he exclaimed as he snatched away the skull ring she had taken from his nightstand. At that moment, Annabeth decided to walk in, giving Nico her best comforting smile in the hopes of calming him down.

"Ah, good err, morning, Nico! I see you've met Leila..."

Nico glared at her. "No shit." Suddenly a bar of soap appeared in his mouth. "Mrgh? Mmph! MRUGHPMG!"

"And that," Leila scowled, "is for using a bad word. Gosh Nico, just because you're the son of Hades doesn't mean you have to have such a _vile _vocabulary!"

Annabeth was beyond horrified. Nico was stunned. Leila just smiled at both of them and skipped to the other side of the cabin where she picked up Mrs. O'Leary's old dog tag. It was the size of a standard shield, yet Leila didn't seem surprised by it at all.

Nico spat out the soap, fuming. "Who do you think you are?"

Leila took her time responding. She observed her nails in the greenish light of the Hades cabin. Nico fought the urge to grind his teeth in frustration. _Aphrodite, _he thought to himself. _Definitely a daughter of Aphrodite._

Finally, she looked up. "Leila Hartley, daughter of Hecate." _Well that explains the magical soap appearance. _She smiled at Nico. "And you are?"

"Wait... I thought you already knew my name?"

"I do. I just like to screw with you."

Annabeth coughed to ease the tension between the two teenagers. "Okay well since you two seem to not be killing each other yet, I'll take it you'll be good friends! So I'm uh, just gonna go find... Percy." She ran from the room before Nico could protest. Leila crossed back to the other side of the room and sat cross legged on his bed. She stared up at him expectantly.

"What?"

She huffed in annoyance. "You know, when they told me that a son of Hades managed to save the world with an undead army lead by him and his father, I pictured you to be a little more... hero-like."

Nico furrowed his eyebrows. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, I suppose I'll get right to it. Nico, you're an unsocial, insensitive outcast." Nico blinked and stared at Leila. He decided that if she was half-god, she was also half-alien, because no one like her could be from this planet.

"Sooo... you broke into my cabin to wake me up and insult me?"

Lelia smacked his arm in annoyance. "No! I wanted to see who was responsible for saving Olympus! And yeah, I know, Percy gave Luke the knife, blah blah, he was the prophecy kid, but where's the fun in that? But leading dead people into battle? Now _that's _something you don't hear about every day! You were the only reason they were able to stop Kronos!"

Nico's mouth dropped. He couldn't believe this girl existed. Was he hallucinating? Was she really a ghost? What girl in her right mind thought an undead army was cool?

She continued her rant and he attempted to tune back in. "...and it was weird, you know, because when they told me about you they all seemed uncomfortable, and I thought hey, why would they dislike their savior? So I wanted to meet you, and now it's clear that you make them nervous because you're so viciously unfriendly! But don't worry, I plan on fixing you!"

"I? You? What? Why?"

"Becauuseeeeeee, silly, everyone at camp should love you! You're a hero! Oh, you're so cute when you're confused. Hmm, how am I gonna start this... OOH! I KNOW! You. Me. Fireworks. Next week. Got it?" she winked at him. "Good. See you then!"

All Nico could do was stand there motionlessly and stare at the door long after she had left.

_Did she... just ask me out?_

"Screw it, I take back everything I said before. Girls were so much easier in the 1930s. I'm going back to bed."


	5. Seeking Solace

**(A/N) I'm back! Sorry for the long delay, but it was finals week and I had to study like a good student or else I'd fail and that isn't good right? I'm going to update a lot more now that finals are over and I have tomorrow off too, so you might see an update then. Okay so the first part of the story is set before the war and the second part is after.**

Chapter 4: Seeking Solace  
>Chris' POV<p>

Clarisse was in the arena again. She had skipped dinner, which didn't make any sense to Chris. Usually, he knew what was wrong. Clarisse was very... vocal about how she was feeling. All the time. If she was happy, thanks the gods. But if she wasn't, which was often, whoever had made her angry would run screaming to Chris hoping that he could calm her down. This time it had been the Stolls. They wouldn't tell him what they did, so Chris had to find out for himself.

He approached her as she beheaded a dummy in a single backhanded stroke of her sword.

"Hey."

Clarisse looked up at him and scowled. Then she sighed, thinking better of it.

"Why are you here, Chris?"

He frowned at her sad tone. "A little birdie told me I'd find you here. Well, actually, it was two birdies, more like vultures since they're always preying on others—" Clarisse raised her eyebrows. "Sorry. I got off track. So what's up?"

She was silent for a few minutes as she turned away and, in slow motion, aimed a killing blow at an invisible opponent. "Nothing. Just practicing my form."

"You never skip dinner unless you're upset."

"I'm not upset! I, I mean, it's none of your business! Sorry," she added as she saw the look on his face. Not knowing what to do, she just returned to practicing.

Chris studied her for a moment. He was better at understanding Clarisse than anyone else. In fact, he was probably the only one who could understand her at all. And he was one of the only people she was nice to. But being nice wasn't her strong suit, and she struggled with being polite and open with him, especially when she was as upset as she was right then.

He knew she was silently begging for him to go away, but Chris could tell she needed someone to talk to. She always did, but she never realized it.

"What did the Stolls say this time?"

Clarisse froze, her arm in mid-swing. "They told you about that, huh?"

He shook his head. "Only that you're upset. So what's wrong?"

"Why don't you go ask the Stoll brothers?" she seethed, flinging her sword at the ground and glaring at him.

Chris stood there leaning against the wall silently, his arms crossed over his chest. "I want to hear it from you," he said quietly.

Clarisse just stared at him. She had never understood how Chris could care so much for her, and he hated it. He wished he could just make her see he loved her.

"It-it was my dad. They mentioned my dad. I was angry because they had decorated my bed with lace and Hello Kitty bed sheets so I... I screamed at them. I told them they were just two good-for-nothing Hermes spawn who couldn't do anything _useful_." As she recalled the situation, her eyes flared with anger.

Chris nodded, thinking. He had lived with the Stolls. They could be annoying, yeah, but they never meant any real harm. "And they said...?"

Clarisse stared at her hands. "They said... 'at least our father cares about us.'" Her voice broke and she looked away.

"Oh, Clarisse, they didn't mean—"

"No! They were right! He doesn't care about me! I bet if I die in the war he'll be happy! No one would miss me!" she shrieked furiously, kicking the dummies across the arena.

"I'd miss you."

His words shocked her. He fought the urge to scream because of how easily she assumed he didn't care about her. "Clarisse, listen to me. Your father loves you. He gave you that magic spear didn't he? He could have given that to any one of his sons, but he gave it to you! And how could you not even think for one minute that I wouldn't miss you? If it weren't for you, I'd still be stuck in that labyrinth, crazy or dead!"

Clarisse looked up at him in surprise at his outburst. Chris was breathing heavily, trying to calm himself down. Usually he didn't lose it, but the upcoming war was making everyone snap.

"I'm sorry Chris! Sometimes it hard for me to... know someone out there cares," she murmured, swallowing hard.

Chris stepped forward and hugged her tightly. "It's okay. I know. Let's just go back to the camp fire, okay?"

"Okay."

As they walked towards the other campers, Clarisse nudged Chris. "Hey so... were you telling the truth? Do you really think that Ares loves me?"

Chris smiled at her. "I know he does."

Up on Mount Olympus, the campers watched as the gods reappeared, one by one, into the now destroyed throne room.

"THERE'S MY GIRL!" Ares bellowed.

Clarisse jumped and looked up at Ares in awe.

"That drakon-slaying? THAT'S what I'm talking about!" Ares dragged Clarisse away from Chris and bragged to each god about how awesome his daughter was.

Chris grinned as he saw Clarisse's face slowly break into a proud smile. She glanced over at him and waved. He waved back, mouthing _told you_.


	6. Break Away

**(A/N) Here I am again! You didn't have to wait too long this time... okay so maybe yeah I should have updated on Friday but I was too excited for the Super Bowl... and now I'm disappointed. Haha you can probably guess I'm a Patriots fan. They just played awfully didn't they? Congrats to the Giants, although I'm not a huge fan of their team they really did deserve to win from the way they played last night. Anyways, story time!**

Chapter 5: Break Away  
>Thalia's POV<p>

She could see Luke's ragged expression, Annabeth's exhausted eyes, and Grover's miserable frown. They were gathered together, shoulder to shoulder, at the base of the hill overlooking Camp Half-Blood. Thalia scanned the distance from where they stood to the top of the hill and compared it to how far away the monsters were. Even if they somehow made it over the hill, they wouldn't be able to get help. It was a suicide mission.

"It's no use. We can't make it," she panted.

Grover's body shook from the cold rain and his fear. "This is all my fault. I'm a terrible satyr!"

"Grover, you can feel sorry for yourself some other time. Now, if you don't mind me asking, HOW THE HELL ARE WE SUPPOSED TO GET UP THERE?" Luke's screams shocked Annabeth, who jumped and hid behind Thalia.

"Luke, quiet! We don't have enough time! We need a distraction!" The monsters were closing in on them. Thalia took Annabeth's hand and began to drag her up the hill. The monsters swarmed forward. There were too many of them to attack all at once, so they had to climb up in rows.

Thalia gritted her teeth. She was tired of this, tired of running from the inevitable. These monsters, they were after _her_. Annabeth, Luke, and Grover didn't deserve having to be punished just because Zeus was careless. She shouldn't even exist. Would dying here really make much of a difference? It was going happen soon anyways. Thalia had often sat awake during the night, contemplating over which age she would probably never reach. She had assumed she'd die before sixteen. Now it seemed it was going to happen a lot sooner.

Grover was climbing up on his hands and knees, braying mournfully. They hadn't had anything to eat for days. Annabeth wasn't fairing very well either. Thalia had to literally drag her up the hill, her feet treading unsteadily on the mud. Even Luke seemed worn out, bruises and cuts peppered across his arms as he advanced slowly. Thalia herself felt lightheaded, on the verge of unconsciousness, or maybe even tears. No. That was impossible. Thalia doesn't cry. She doesn't show weakness. She's an unwanted daughter of Zeus. She's supposed to be tough.

But when climbing that hill with her knees aching and the horrible cries of exhaustion from her friends, Thalia felt something. The realization slammed her so hard that she woke up from her stupor. This wasn't going to work. The monsters were twenty yards away. She was going to _die_. And she was determined to go out with a bang.

They'd gone through too much to not make it to camp. Thalia owed it to Grover to let his quest be a success. He'd bring back two half-bloods safe and sound. She couldn't let Luke, who had the strongest will of anyone she'd ever known, die so young. She'd shared secrets, feelings, and stories with him. She had poured her heart out to him. He couldn't die. Then there was Annabeth. The fiercest little girl she'd ever met. Her gray eyes burned with intelligence that yearned to be released into the world. Annabeth was Thalia's sister. That's when Thalia made the biggest decision of her life. She was going to break away from her friends. She was ready to break away and let them be free as she bore the pain she had wrought upon them with her existence.

"Luke, take Annabeth."

He wiped the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand. "Maybe we should give her to Grover. You and I are the best fighters; together we might have a chance."

Thalia shook her head sadly. Luke didn't understand. "No Luke. You have to take Annabeth _and _Grover. Make sure they make it down to camp okay."

"Wait, but what about you?"

Thalia stared ahead at the oncoming army.

"What? NO! THALIA, YOU CAN'T! You just..._ you can't Thalia..._" His last words were hoarse and heartbroken. Thalia felt her stomach twist in a knot.

"I have to Luke. This... it's all my fault. You'll understand one day." She hugged Annabeth and pushed her next to Luke. "You go with Luke, okay Annabeth?"

Annabeth's large eyes met Thalia's. "You're... not coming... are you? Thalia, please! Come with us!"

Thalia's eyes watered and her smiled wavered. "I'll see you again one day. You're going to do lots of great things. You'll build hundreds of buildings. You'll find great friends. I'll never forget you." She painfully disconnected their eye contact and looked at Grover.

"Goatboy. It's up to you now. I'm relying on you to take care of them. Not just right now. Forever. Got it?" Grover sobbed as a response. "I'll take that as a yes. You're a great satyr. You'll be the one to find Pan. NOW GO!" Thalia pushed them down the hill as she stood fiercely at the top, watching the monsters, who were only a few yards away, approach.

The hell hounds growled hungrily, the Furies snapped their whips, and the _empousai _grinned, exposing their pointy teeth. Yet Thalia didn't back down. She had to hold them off for a good five minutes. That would give Grover enough time. She drew her spear and thrust it in the air.

"WHO DARES CHALLENGE THE MIGHTY DAUGHTER OF ZEUS?"

Electricity flared through her body. Her spear sunk through the bodies of too many monsters that replaced themselves faster than she thought possible. She was surrounded, ringed by their glaring yellow eyes. "YAH!" Electricity disintegrated a half a dozen monsters. Her spear took out three more. She shocked a few with Aegis.

It wasn't enough.

Exhaustion seeped through her veins. Her limbs were boulders, impossible to move. Every breath was a painful stab in the chest. After what seemed like hours, but Thalia knew was really only a few minutes, she lowered her shield and spear. She must have bought enough time.

"Do your worst, you awful beasts. Thanks for making my life miserable. So who wants to kill me? Anyone?"

A hell hound lunged for her. She lifted Aegis and her spear. Her spear flung out of her hands and rolled down the hill. Aegis was wrenched off her arm, its weight bending her wrist the wrong way. She heard an awful crack as her arm shattered and she sunk to her knees in pain. The hell hound took advantage of the opening and sunk its teeth into her stomach. The pain was almost too much to bear. The only thing keeping her alive was the knowledge that her friends had made it. They had survived. They would all live to see another day.

Thalia's body thudded onto the ground. The rain swirled her red blood into the mood, creating a sick sort of thick and soupy concoction. As she felt her vision grow dark, she hung onto one last thought.

_"Break away... I have to break away..."_

Her vision flashed from black to gold and green. She smelled pine needles and fresh, sticky sap. Her memories faded away and were replaced with a lethargic happiness.


	7. Heaven

(A/N) Hello my little valentines! How's Single Awareness Day going for all of ya'll? Good? I'm glad! I got chocolate and mini cupcakes, and that's always good. Anyways, in the spirit of Valentine's Day, I decided to update again! This chapter is gonna be really lovey dovey since it's the holiday of love today. Enjoy! Or, if you hate romance... hate away!

Chapter 6: Heaven  
>Beckendorf POV<p>

He'd stood on the banks of the river ever since he'd arrived, even though he had been granted access to Elysium along with all the other heroes. But Beckendorf hadn't even bothered to look at the city, nor step foot in its direction. The second they had released him from the courtroom, he had walked to the banks of the Styx and stood there, watching the spirits come and go. It amazed him how light and free his spirit body felt. He could stand there all day and never tire, never have to sit down and rest.

Occasionally he'd see someone he knew. His father iris messaged him the day he died and engaged him in an awkward conversation. Beckendorf would have preferred it if he had just sent a card (Hallmark has cards for your dead demigod son, right?) but it was nice to see his father cared enough to talk to him. Sometimes Nico would pass through and update him with all the latest news. News about camp, about the war, news about... _her_. It had been several days since Nico had last stopped by, and Beckendorf was getting nervous.

Every now and then a camper would exit Charon's boat. Beckendorf wasn't sure if he was happy he had company or sad that they had to die at such a young age too. Nevertheless, none of them could convince him to leave the riverbank and enter Elysium. He wasn't ready yet. He was waiting for someone.

On August 16, just a few short days after his own death, Beckendorf finally found what he was looking for. Despite the dull gray robes, her face shone radiantly through the mist. His breath caught in his throat. _Beautiful_, that's what she was. She was the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen.

He rose from where he had been sitting moments ago, drawing blueprints in the mud with a stick he had found. He didn't take his eyes off of her once as he approached the small docking area where Charon was about to anchor the boat.

His heart fluttered when she saw him. He had almost forgotten what she looked like. Her hair, her eyes, her smile, all looking so magnificent that he couldn't believe he had forgotten about them.

Silena walked towards him in a trance, ignoring Charon's fake vomiting faces and noises of disgust. She stopped a few inches away from him, her face tilted upwards towards his, him looking down at her.

"You're here." With nothing to say in response, she just nodded.

"DAMMIT SILENA!" Silena jumped and opened her mouth. "No, don't even! I told you to stay alive! I TOLD YOU THAT, NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS TO ME, I WANTED YOU TO LIVE A FULL LIFE! I... I wanted you to be happy," he trailed off, losing steam.

Silena stared fiercely into his eyes. He had missed that spark; he had missed it so much.

"I'm sorry Charlie, but did you really expect me to stay up there when the love of my life is down here? There was nothing for me to live for! Every day I'd just sit there thinking about you. I would wake up to the sound of your voice, only to find that you weren't really there! If you really wanted me to be happy... you'd understand that I could only be happy with you." A single tear streaked down her face, which she ignored.

Beckendorf sighed and wiped away her tear. "I know what you mean. I'm dead, and I felt like I was dying without you," he snorted as he stroked her hair.

Silena stepped forward and threw her arms around him. They stayed like that for a while, hugging by the shore. Beckendorf wasn't sure how long they stood there, but Charon was able to make three trips back and forth and gave them revolted faces the whole time, so he figured they had hugged for a while.

Finally, Silena sighed and broke away. "We, um, we should get to Elysium," she whispered, drying her eyes. "What is it like? Is it paradise, just like the stories say?"

Beckendorf shrugged. "I dunno. Should we go find out?"

"Wait a minute." Silena crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. "You've been here almost a week, and you haven't been to Elysium?"

Beckendorf somehow managed to blush despite being a spirit with no blood or physical body. "I, uh... didn't go."

"Didn't go?"

"Nope."

"I see... and why not?"

Beckendorf coughed and scratched his head. "Er well, I was kinda, well I was hoping that—"

"Yes?"

"You see, I, um..."

Silena tapped her foot impatiently. He cleared his throat.

"Idntwangowitoutyo."

She blinked. "Excuse me?"

"I didn't wanna go without you!" he blurted out.

Silena smiled. "Aww, you waited for me? You're so sweet Charlie! But really? You'd force yourself not to enter the so-called 'heaven of the Underworld' just because of me?"

Beckendorf looked away, embarrassed. "I guess I thought it just wouldn't be like heaven if you weren't there."

Silena stared at him before leaning up to kiss him. After breaking apart, she intertwined her fingers with his.

"That is just about the most romantic thing anyone has ever said to me in my entire life. Err I mean, my entire death. Does that make sense? Whatever. Elysium?"

He nodded. "Elysium."

It would be rough, but Beckendorf knew they could get through the grief of dying. Together they walked towards their new home, each knowing that anywhere was heaven when they had each other.


End file.
